View Full Version : MIDWEST HAMB CHOP-COVERT ACTIVITIES/The cats outa the bag...
choprods
11-09-2003, 08:08 PM
THE CATS OUTA THE BAG!.......Well there was a midwest HAMCHOP after all..ITS ALREADY OVER THOUGH!- SO IT MAY BE ANTI-CLIMACTIC[sp?]Our good buddy -ZOR- NOW hasa shoebox with a Chopped top.[couldnt happen to a nicer guy]this Hamb gathering was attended by this group of Mo hambers:Our buddy ATCH [who started this post]......Scarliner......and DJ[ZOR].....of course- Me, and our non-hamb buddy "Jimmy the kid"[from Elmer]Ed and Joan Thornton[friends] and various passerbys during the two days. we started Sat morning at 9:30-10 AM and everyone just pulled out at 6PM this eve[sun]..IT WAS A BLAST/and Im sure the other guys will jump in with some pics soon as the read this[I didnt take a pic!]Thanks for coming -everyone and Zor- get to work and finish all the shit we didnt get done!! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
McGrath
11-09-2003, 08:20 PM
Where did you do it? I guess I lost track of that Post. Last I read about it it was still in the air as to where it was going to be.
hotrodladycrusr
11-09-2003, 08:21 PM
Thats awesome news. Congrats to all involved. Now, lets see some photos. http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
choprods
11-09-2003, 08:32 PM
We got together here at My shop in Elmer,Missouri/we just plotted and schemed to keep it simple and off the record till it had really happened........
dusty
11-09-2003, 08:38 PM
Sounds like great fun. Guess I missed the posts on this one. Met Zor at the drags and had him "try on" the shoebox. Bout had him talked into tryin it himself I think but glad he had the pros there to help. Thats one young feller that seemed hungry for the knowledge. Probably got a noodle full this weekend. Pics please!!
Assdragger
11-09-2003, 09:01 PM
DAMN-IT!!! E-mail me next time Kenny, I guess I didnt see it or you didnt post that it was going on, or....maybe you just didnt want my big ugly ass there!!
Had to work yesterday, but I had nothing going on today except for coaxing the old bolts out of this damn T body!
Lets see some pic`s boy`s, I know Atch has got to have some!
McGrath
11-09-2003, 09:06 PM
"DAMN-IT!!! E-mail me next time Kenny"
I think he did it on purpose. He didn't want any of us Youngsters there breaking up his concentration. You know how those Old Guys are... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
Assdragger
11-09-2003, 09:46 PM
I`ve cut a few roof`s in my time, havent actually put to many back together but I got that measurement shit down! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif I couldnt tell you how many me and the ol`man cut before I left home but it was quite a few!
Come on boy`s, where`s the pic`s??
choprods
11-09-2003, 09:49 PM
Scarliner and Atch have the DIRT====[pics] so I have to rely on em to post some...../assdragger and any others....if you'd seen the space in my rathole[shop] you'd know why it had to be a few rather than like we'd rather done it!we were gringing sparks in each others eyes and ears /and at the same time was Migweld-flashing the others too!none of us will be able to hear or see tomorrow.......
Assdragger
11-09-2003, 10:20 PM
I`m givin ya shit Kenny, I`ve seen your shop AND...I KNOW where you live!!! DONT make me come up there! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Come on Atch.....wheres the pic`s?
scarliner
11-09-2003, 10:42 PM
Well,heres some pics,in no order.I know Atch has some better pics,hope he will post them.All I can say was it was a blast,everyone worked like clock work,we worked hard,had some great conversations,ate too much,had some big laughs,the young guys learned a little and the old farts did too,we are all trashed,but a smiling kinda trashed!We didnt get everything done we wanted to,but hey we only had two days and we had to have our fun,work came second!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 10:44 PM
more pics
scarliner
11-09-2003, 10:46 PM
more
scarliner
11-09-2003, 10:50 PM
Zor-Likes it as a convert
Cool Zor, looks like progress. But I have to ask.....how you going to get that thing on a ship? http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
scarliner
11-09-2003, 10:56 PM
pics
Greezy
11-09-2003, 10:59 PM
I met Zor at the drags and he was HUNGERY for knowledge, glad to see his ride coming together. Hes gonna have a nice little custom. Zor what you get figured out on those eyebrows?
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:02 PM
Choprods supervising the whole operation!
choprods
11-09-2003, 11:05 PM
C'mon Atch- post some pics of what really http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/smirk.gif happened......
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:06 PM
Atch after working his regular job all night,friday night and working with us all day sat.This is the position he does the best with!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:11 PM
Zor getting busy!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:27 PM
Zor ,looks to be a fast learner!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:32 PM
Wacking the w.s. posts,point of no return!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:35 PM
This were it all happened.Not Boyds,but it worked!
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:45 PM
some more pics
scarliner
11-09-2003, 11:55 PM
Zor on sunday,I think the old farts won!We wore the boy out,but it wasnt easy,he gave us a run for the money!
Looks rad and I'm glad yall got one done, but that's no HAMB chop...
scarliner
11-10-2003, 12:02 AM
rear roof area,Zor doing his thing,we hope!
scarliner
11-10-2003, 12:14 AM
working
50mercfan
11-10-2003, 12:18 AM
looks great guys, nothin' more satisfying than lowerin' the lid. good idea about havin' all the buddies over too.
scarliner
11-10-2003, 12:21 AM
rear roof area wide open.
scarliner
11-10-2003, 12:23 AM
rear roof area side view.
scarliner
11-10-2003, 12:25 AM
Last pic from me,come om Atch lets see what you got.
choprods
11-10-2003, 08:44 AM
Ryans right-I need to clarify that the title of this post shoulda read ZOR CHOP instead of Hambchop....[appologies]we just had a narrow window of opportunity and a limited time base/transport/shop space as well so us- a local group of Hambers planned this [off the board] to fit Zors schedule....he's going into the NAVY in January, so this needed to be done early as possible so he can get it back home- buttoned up before then.It May not be a Hamb Chop-[that would be a minimum of 6" chop http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif] but it got done and Zor got the amount HE wanted removed ......... http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif all of us involved agreed that we enjoyed the GOOD time we had doing the top chop with him.
ok,
when i got home last night i downloaded my pix from the camera to the puter and crashed (big time). tonight when i get home i'll try to put a few of the best ones on here. there are over a hundred of them. guess i'll have to learn about starphoto or something.
there are some really good pix. when we started i set my camera over at the side and told everyone there to take a pic whenever there was something to shoot. i can't give credit for who took what, 'cause i don't even know.
first i've got to defend myself: i normally work days, but for the last 3 weeks i've had to be here at work from 6pm to 6am m-f. friday we did 5-5 instead of 6-6. so i basically get home at 5:30 or so (that's am, folks) and shortly thereafter headed out to choprods' place, which is about an hour and a half drive. by lunch time i was trashed and the pic they showed of me on the floor was where they left me when they all went to lunch. i gotta give 'em credit, though, they brought me some lunch back. a couple of hours later i was back on the road to work again. this time we only worked 6-2 and i was able to get a few hours sleep before heading out again for choprods'. i thought i was going to go to sleep and run off the road a couple of times during the drives, but all turned out well. as of today i'm back to "normal", or at least working days again.
the cast of characters (or, "now for the credit"):
kenny (choprods) supplied the shop, the heat, the electricity, the tools, etc. but the most important thing he supplied is the knowledge, skills, and experience to not only scope out the chop and do the largest share of the work, but the patience to teach the rest of us what he was doing and to give us a chance to do a little hands-on work.
d. j. (zor) supplied the car, the enthusiasm, and the determination to make it happen. he also did LOTS of the actual physical work. we won't discuss his age here, but let it be known that he is YOUNG.
reggie (scarliner) & i were the other hambers there. reggie did a lot of work, too. i mostly supplied a camera and held down various chairs and a pile of carpet pad.
ed (& joan); ed lurks occasionally on the hamb, but has never signed on. without ed the car could never have gotten from st. louis (where zor lives) to elmer (where choprods' shop is) that's about 200 miles each way. ed not only transported the shoebox, but had to be in the st. louis area saturday night to take care of other committments, so he made two round trips. joan came back with him on sunday. counting the miles from ed's to zor's, i'm sure he put over a thousand miles on his truck in two days. none of this would have happened without him.
jimmy; the local "kid". according to kenny, jimmy is the "other gearhead" in elmer. they apparently are the only two who know or care anything about mechanical stuff in the area except for tractors and combines. jimmy turned 18 friday. that's right, 18. he did a lot of the physical work on the chop. it was obvious to me that this wasn't the first time he held a grinder in his hand. we need more younguns like him around. btw; he's got a '50 chevy pick-em-up truck and an s-10 frame that he's gonna put together.
so there it is. it happened. it's done. it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity for me. and as the old saying goes: "a good time was had by all."
ryan, i'm sorry if you object to the terminology "midwest hamb chop" being used for this past weekend. earlier this year there were efforts on the board to make a "midwest hamb chop" happen. seems like folks wanted to talk about it, but no one wanted to make it happen. well, this may not have been "sanctioned" by the board, but it came about because of the hamb. the specifics aren't that important, but in short the hamb drew this crowd together and without the hamb this chop would never have happened. what it wasn't was a fund raiser for the board. what it was was a group of guys getting together to get one's car chopped. just like it should be. the way hot rodders have been doing things since the beginning of the automobile. (only an explanation; not a rant)
like i said, i'll try to post some more pix tonight.
i bet the biggest expense for Zor to chop his top was the CELL PHONE bill to keep in touch with NADS during the process! http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
looks good, nice conserative chop.
No apology needed. I'm just protecting a name and some feelings as there is a process that needs to be followed to make an official HAMB chop... Although I am pissed I wasn't invited - for the better anyways as I was out of town this weekend.
Car looks great though. Kenny sure is good at making a profile...
Thanks for the pics.
i'll post a few. bear with me, please. the last pic will be of zor driving the shoebox to the trailer for the trip to st. louis.
i'll start with the back glass (we just cut the rubber gasket on the front windshield and took out the glass), which we protected with several layers of cardboard and duct tape.
OOPS!!!!! (or "too late now" as kenny makes the first cut)
what zor looked like when he saw kenny making that first cut
there are lots of ways to cut metal and we used several. this is one
ed, zor, and reggie remove the back glass and frame from car
zor using another method to cut steel
reggie using yet another method
sorta looks nekkid or sumptin
setting the top back on for the first trial fit
it's done! oops, my bad, no it's not
"minor" fitment adjustment
this is how far the roof slid forward
comin' together; at least at the front
still a long way to go in the back, though. that looked to me like where the most work was.
startin' to look like a car again
jimmy showing us his touch with a grinder; reggie, too
atch making lots-o-sparks without really accomplishing much
the first of several applications of plastic
the guilty parties:
atch - mike atchley
choprods - kenny baker
zor - d. j. zor
ed - ed thornton
scarliner - reggie baker
jimmy - jimmy nolte
goin' home so zor can fnish me
goin' home so zor can finish me
remember that tube? if any of you all have a nos or good used gas tank for a 51 ford zor could really use one.
that's all folks. i tried to keep this down to just the tech shots and not the anecdotal pix. hope you all either learned something or at least were entertained for a few minutes.
i would recommend that if there are any pix you want to keep that you download them soon. i'm guessing that ryan won't leave a post with this many pix up for very long. i'm sure that this is burning a lot of his bandwidth.
McGrath
11-10-2003, 10:24 PM
Almost looks like somebody knew what they were doing http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/wink.gif
sodbuster
11-11-2003, 12:15 AM
Very cool post. And I am sure that Zor really appreciated it. Chopping a top with multiple tools and saws with grinder blades on it (is that the ones that sears will no longer take back Kenny?) and come-alongs for minor adjustment, Yep that is a Chopped top.
Looks good guys.
Chris Nelson
Kansas
Rocky
11-11-2003, 12:29 AM
Lookin good...and the best fuel tank for a 51 ford is a 60's mustang/fairlane tank. Especially if the trunk floor's bad. That's what I used in my 49 and never regretted it.
48_HEMI
11-11-2003, 10:27 AM
Makes me want to go out and whack something. great post and another custom rodder on his way. A great civic deed indeed http://www.jalopyjournal.com/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif
Well first off i owe a lot of thank you's.
to choprods for having the space , tools, and most importantly the knowledge.
to Ed Thornton for the ride because it never would've gotten done with out the car there.
to Atch for a place to crash on fri. and the help holding the chairs in place.
to Jim (i never caught his last name) for the help. i hope he learned half as much as i did so he can put it to use on his truck.
and to scarliner for the help and support. and for the good deal on that 8" rearend. (you really got haggle with that guy).
now that its all wacked i've got some grinding and filling to do. as well as weld the package shelf back in place. i don't have a digital camera or scanner, but i'll still try to post some update pics if i get the oppurtunity.
Greazy51 i don't think i'm gonna us the eyebrows on this car right now they are hanging on the garage wall.
Well fuck me that's awesome!
Kenny you are the the man.
Thank you for taking our little shit talker under your wing.
I miss that ZOR kid a lot. I gotta tell you the whole time he was down here he never hesitated to lend a hand or want to expand his knowledge. In all the years I've been doing this he's the only kid that was ever serious about this old car lark. Sure there were a bunch of kids doing the "I'm gonna get me an old car thing." But he's the ONLY one that took it seriously. I'm proud of him and I love all you guys for helping JUNIOR out.
The car looks great, the profile's spot in, she does need to be lowered though.
What's the deal with the gas tank in the grille opening though ZOR? That looks a little dangerous.
And yeah, that shoebox looks a lot cleaner than I thought it would.
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